Sir William Holles (or Hollis) (1471?– 20 October 1542) rose from apprenticeship to a mercer to become master warden of his company and Lord Mayor of London in 1539.

Life

He was admitted to the freedom of the Worshipful Company of Mercers on 17 September 1499, and became master of the company in 1528. He was elected Sheriff of London in 1527. He was knighted by

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

in 1533, and became Lord Mayor of London on St. Edward's Day, 13 October 1539. On 3 January 1539–40 he received in great state Anne of Cleves, on her way through the city, before her marriage On 4 February, Holles and the Aldermen accompanied the king and queen by water to Westminster. Holles was a wealthy merchant, and besides two houses in London, one in Bishopsgate Street, where he kept his mayoralty, and another in the parish of

St Mary-le-Bow The Church of St Mary-le-Bow is a Church of England parish church in the City of London. Located on Cheapside, one of the city's oldest and most important thoroughfares, the church was founded in 1080 by Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury. Rebui ...

, acquired several manors in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire, Middlesex and Essex. He also was the owner of Clement's Inn in the Strand.

Death and legacy

He died at his house in London on 13 October 1542, and was buried in

St Helen's Church, Bishopsgate St Helen's Bishopsgate is an Anglican church in London. It is located in Great St Helen's, off Bishopsgate. It is the largest surviving parish church in the City of London. Several notable figures are buried there, and it contains more monuments ...

, where a monument to his memory was erected in the middle of the north aisle. His property portfolio passed down through several generations of the family and became the basis of the property owned by the Earl of Clare. He left the bulk of the estate to his grandson William (grandfather of John Holles, 1st Earl of Clare). He left £200 () in his will to pay for the

Coventry Cross Coventry Cross was an important landmark in the cathedral city of Coventry, England. Standing between Cuckoo Lane and Holy Trinity Church and in the alley known as Trinity Churchyard, it was a modern version of the historic market cross, such ...

which was built in 1544, and taken down in 1771.Coventry Cross
at British History Online, in Victoria County History, County of Warwick Volume 8, 1969 A replica was unveiled in 1976.

Family

He was the son of Thomas Holles of Stoke, Coventry. He married Elizabeth, daughter of George Scopham. Lady Elizabeth Holles died on 13 March 1543, and was buried in

. By her will she endowed six almshouses for that parish, leaving the care of their erection to her executor, Sir Andrew Judd. They had three sons and two daughters *Thomas Holles *

Sir William Holles ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

(1509–91), who developed Haughton Hall in Haughton, Nottinghamshire,Thomas M Blagg
Haughton Hall
Transactions of the Thoroton Society, XXXV (1931); copy online at Nottinghamshire history website and married Anne, daughter of John Denzel, of Denzel, Cornwall. *Francis Holles *Anna Holles *Joanna Holles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hollyes, William 1471 births 1542 deaths Merchants of the Staple 16th-century lord mayors of London 16th-century English politicians 15th-century English people 16th-century English businesspeople